Page sponsored by Texaco Caribbean Limited
Publication: Daily Nation
Paper Page: 17A
Paper Date: Wed, Feb 6, 2002
Byline: Compiled by Terry Ally
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Page sponsored by Texaco Caribbean Limited |
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The demand for organic produce in Barbados is greater than farmers and supermarkets can supply. President of the Organic Growers And Consumers Association (OGCA) John Hunte said 98 per cent of consumers interviewed at supermarkets said they were willing to purchase organic produce even though the price was higher. As a result, the OGCA will be seeking to train more farmers in organic growing in order to fill the void.
"The survey (among Barbadians) found
that people over 30 years old were more willing to buy organic produce. As
people get older they become more self-conscious about their health and
develop an interest in healthy foods and they do have more disposal
income," said Hunte.
Director of buying of Super Centre Limited, Allan Kinch, also said his
supermarkets were selling organic produce faster than he could supply
them.
"Organics will grow in demand in Barbados, people want them but we
cannot get enough. When it comes to carrots we would buy 10 000 pounds a
week but we would not be able get more than 1 000 pounds of organic
carrots," said Kinch.
One cannot distinguish organics and chemically grown produce by sight and
so Kinch suggested organic produce should be specially packaged and
branded. Even though Barbadians were willing to pay more, he cautioned
farmers not to price themselves out of the market with exorbitantly high
prices.
Hunte said the high overheads were as a result of a higher than normal
level of manual labour in the critical first two years of operation. To
help reduce the overheads, association will be getting assistance from
WOOFers (World-wide Organisation of Organic Farmers). Its members provide
volunteer labour in the first year to help new farmers get started.
"Eventually they become our potential export clients," Hunte
said.
The association which got started in 1998 with a $20 000 grant from the
Food and Agricultural Organisation for the purchase of equipment and
planting material, has since received training assistance from the
Caribbean Agriculture Research and Development Institute (CARDI) and the
Inter-American Institute for Co-operation in Agriculture (IICA). CARDI
provided hands on training while IICA provided a 40-hour classroom
computer-based training session back in 1998. Another training course is
scheduled for this month and farmers are being invited to sign up for this
course.
The association is now seeking international certification for its member
farms. These represent about 50 acres of land on which, in the last three
years, have been producing free-range eggs, free-range chicken, turkey,
and duck, paw paw, cassava, cucumber, plantains, cotton, limes, mangoes,
apples, watermelon, and a wide range of herbs including dill, thyme,
basil, parsley, marjoram and touch me not.
"Ninety per cent of what we do is by trust as we do not have a
certificate. We are asking people to trust what we say and sometimes we
have to provide written evidence. We recently had a British woman visit
Barbados and wanted organic vegetables. She came to us and before she
purchased, asked good questions. There are a lot of knowledgeable people
in Europe and some will not come here unless they know they can get the
food here because they sometimes require certain diets."
There is also growing international interest in the organic farms of
Barbados, especially by students who have been applying to do volunteer
work here on essentially what would be an organic farming holiday. So far,
there have been students from the University of Toronto, McGill
University, California and Wales. The problem, however, is that there is
not adequate accommodation for the visitors but this is being addressed.
"We have had talks with the 2000 Community Centre at Lambeth in
London and they are interested in helping us. They will raise money in
England to send a team of artisans to Barbados to renovate the building we
use at the Bawden Environmental Park and we will raise money here to
purchase construction material."
Hunte said organic produce is gaining acceptance around the world because
it is a healthier, non-chemical choice. To control pests they use either
natural enemies of the pest (biological control) or natural pesticides
such as those made from the Neem tree, for example.
The result is a better taste.
"The produce grow slower and take the full period of time to grow and
so they fully develop all the natural sugars and nutrients and the flavour
is different to those boosted by agrochemicals," Hunted said. The
association can be contacted at 438-8076 or via huntejohn@hotmail.com
In a benchmark ruling, the Trial Board of Puntarenas in Costa Rica has convicted the captain and owners of a longline vessel of fishing illegally in the marine protected waters of Cocos Island National Park, located 300 miles off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.
The area lies in the migratory path of the endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle, and contains critical habitat for unique coral species and a diversity of marine life. The largest uninhabited island in the world, Cocos Island was declared a World Heritage Site four years ago due to its importance for large deep sea species such as sharks, manta rays and whales. Cocos Island is unique in the world as a habitat for marine species where breeding, birth, growth, and feeding takes place.
The captain and vessel were first apprehended on August 21, last year, by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship Ocean Warrior, captained by the society's founder Paul Watson. They captured the mother ship San Jose I, out of Manta, Ecuador, and seven of its tenders small boats that were supplying the main vessel. The boats were targeting sharks using long lines, a fishing method known to also hook and drown turtles, rays and sea birds.
Penalties handed down Friday included confiscation of the vessel, the owners being fined US$300 000 (BDS$600 000), and the captain being handed a three-year jail term. However, because of his Ecuadorian citizenship, he will be allowed to return to Ecuador in lieu of jail time in Costa Rica.
The confiscated vessel is being turned over to the Ministry of Public Security to beef up enforcement of the Cocos Island National Park marine protected areas from future illegal fishing activities.